Deer Hunting Popular In Lake Statewide Sales Of Licenses Are Below Last Year's Figures

December 25, 1985|By Cheryl Gordon of The Sentinel Staff

TAVARES — Compared with last year's figures, sales of hunting licenses are down statewide, with 20,000 fewer having been sold between June and November of this year.

Officials from the Florida Game and Fresh Water Fish Commission, however, said the sport is just as popular and productive as ever in Lake, Sumter and Marion counties this season.

''After talking to several wildlife officers, who are out in the field, I can say the game harvest has been comparable to last year's, if not better, after the same amount of time,'' said Lt. Byron Stalvey, the commission's hunter education officer in Ocala. ''The only difference is last year it peaked the first week of the season and then tapered off. This year it has remained at a plateau.''

Stalvey said deer hunting continues to be the most popular attraction and harvest figures, depending on management areas, are equal or up, from last season.

''So far during the general gun season there have been 434 deer shot at the Ocala Wildlife Management Area,'' Stalvey said. ''That's up slightly from last year.''

The Marion County management area places bag limits on the hunting of its vast territory because of a decline in the deer population there during the past few years. Hunters are permitted one deer per day and two per season at Ocala.

Stalvey said 75 deer have been taken at the smaller Richloam Management Area, which extends across both Lake and Sumter counties. Twenty deer were checked in at the Fort McCoy Management Area in Marion County.

Fort McCoy, Ocala and Richloam are the only three management areas open to hunters in the tri-county area at this time. Sumter County's Jumper Creek and Lake County's Rock Springs management areas were recently closed at the end of special hunting seasons.

Hunting of all legal game -- deer, turkey, bobwhite quail, rabbit, gray and fox squirrel, coot, wild hogs, crow, dove, duck and woodcock -- is permitted at Fort McCoy and Richloam with the exception of wild hogs. Fox squirrel and turkey hunting is prohibited at Ocala, where hunters may now pursue all other types of legal game.

Wildlife officers expect permits and participation to increase after the Christmas holiday, when hunters try new equipment they received as gifts.

One statistic that has not changed has to do with violations.

''Violators are a very small portion of the hunters out there,'' Stalvey said. ''After talking to the other officers, we are about par with last year's figures.''

Hunting without a license, management area stamp and permission on management and private grounds is a violation. Hunting licenses may be obtained for $11.50 and stamps for $10 at county tax offices and their agents. The commission will resume its continuous hunter education course on Jan. 28 at its Orlando headquarters, 5950 W. Colonial Drive. The free course will take place on Tuesdays at 6:30 p.m. For more information call 1-800-342-9620.